Bacon Cheddar Muffins

Good morning everyone!! Since I had some extra time this morning, I thought I would get up and make some of my mom's favorite muffins. I'm not a big muffin fan. I only eat the tops, they are usually too sweet, and they're pretty boring. These muffins are the exception. They are full of cheese and bacon and you will want to eat every single bite.

Bacon Cheddar Muffins:

2 cups Bisquick

1 egg

2/3 cup milk

1/4 cup canola oil

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

10 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled (I use microwave bacon)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2. Mix all ingredients except for cheese & bacon

3. Batter will be lumpy, so don't worry about getting it completely smooth

4. Fold in cheese & bacon

5. Pour batter into 12 muffin cups

6. Bake for 20 minutes

Mexican Cornbread

If there's one thing that instantly takes me back to my grandmother's kitchen, it's Mexican Cornbread. This is her recipe that she perfected over the years. She would make this with almost anything - chicken, pork, casseroles, anything. My grandfather was one of those guys who wanted bread with every meal. This was my favorite!! Somehow my grandmother's cornbread always came out thin and crispy. Mine was fluffy, but moist, spicy, and delicious!!

Mexican Cornbread:
1 1/2 cup cornmeal
1 small can cream style corn
2/3 cup oil pour some in skillet
2 eggs
6 or more jalapeno ringlets chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 cup buttermilk (or milk) or more if mixture gets too thick -- (I used regular milk)
Cast Iron Skillet

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2. Mix all ingredients -- the mixture should be thin and runny like cake batter

3. When oven gets to 250 degrees put skillet in to get hot

4. Bake 20- 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown

For some reason, mine stuck to the bottom a little bit, so it broke apart.

ABC Bread (Almond, Banana, & Coconut)

I love to bake on the weekends if I have time. This morning, I got up, made some coffee, turned on some music (click here to listen to my "Baking Mix") and I decided to bake something for Jason. I found this recipe from a new blog that I just discovered. Jason doesn't love bananas, and neither do I, but this recipe sounded really good. After he tried a bite, he agreed that even though this recipe has 4 bananas in it, you don't really taste it (same goes for the coconut, it's there, but just a hint).

Almond Banana Coconut Bread:
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
4 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 2 cups)
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut, toasted
3/4 cup almonds (slivered or chopped), toasted

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. To toast almonds, place in skillet on medium low heat, when you smell them, they're ready

3. Continue the same process with coconut -- the coconut will toast much faster and can easily burn, so watch it!!

4. In a mixing bowl, sift flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking soda

5. In a mixer, blend butter until smooth and creamy

6. Add sugars and mix on medium speed for a couple of minutes

7. Add eggs and beat well

8. Add vanilla and coconut milk

9. Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mix just until the flour is all mixed in

10. Stir in the toasted almonds & coconut by hand

11. Place in baking dishes for 40-45 minutes......let cool for 10 minutes before serving

Four perfect loaves every time!! I bet you're thinking....."Wow, cool pan Kyle!! Where can I get one?" Well, here's the link to get your own. I love this pan because you can get more loaves baked at the same time and it's just easier to deal with than four individual loaf pans. Don't forget, several holidays are just around the corner and this bread would be a great gift for people you don't want to spend money on!